Newspaper marketing funds unaffected by NOTW’s fate

The axeing of the News of the World (NOTW) will not affect the budget of trade body the Newspaper Marketing Agency (NMA) this year.

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The NMA, which promotes the value of newspaper advertising to clients with research and case studies, says that its budgets were already signed off before the phone hacking scandal and subsequent closure of NOTW erupted.

The NMA declined to explain the funding mechanism used by its six member publishers. It might be expected that NOTW owner News International, as the biggest newspaper publisher, would contribute the larger share and might seek to ratchet down its contribution now it no longer publishes the largest circulation English language newspaper.

The body is chaired by managing director of News International Commercial Paul Hayes.

News International still owns The Sun, The Times and The Sunday Times.

The NMA’s budget for 2012 will be set “towards the end of the year”. An NMA spokesman said that the organisation’s board decided on the projects to be undertaken before settling on budget needs. He pointed out that after Express Newspapers quit the NMA in 2007, its annual budget actually went up.

The NMA was set up in 2003 amid scepticism that the fiercely competitive newspaper industry could work together on a common project.

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